Federico Licastro^*

BIOCELL, Vol.49, No.6, pp. 981-989, 2025, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2025.062303 - 24 June 2025

Abstract Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is a neurodegenerative disease causing the most frequent form of dementia in old age. AD etiology is still uncertain and deposition of abnormal proteins in the brain along with chronic neuroinflammation have been suggested as pathogenic mechanisms of neuronal death. Infections by exogenous neurotropic virus, endogenous retrovirus reactivation, infections by other microbes, and air pollutants may either induce neurodegeneration or activate brain inflammation. Up to 8% of the human genome has a retroviral origin. These ancient retroviruses, also called human endogenous retroviruses, are associated with a clinical history of several neurodegenerative diseases.… More >

Meng Wang¹, Onkei Lei^1,2, Frankie U Kei Wong¹, Water Soi Po Wong¹, Walter Heung Chin Hui¹, Gasper Chi Hong Leong¹, Wenze Fang^1,3, Zhaowei Kong^1,*

International Journal of Mental Health Promotion, Vol.27, No.3, pp. 363-378, 2025, DOI:10.32604/ijmhp.2025.060875 - 31 March 2025

Abstract Background: This study evaluated physical fitness and mental health in young and elderly women 3 months after mild COVID-19 infection, and examined the impact of infection and age on long COVID occurrence and trajectory. Methods: There were 213 eligible female volunteers (107 young, 106 elderly) recruited approximately three months after the significant outbreak of COVID-19 in China. Participants completed a fitness test and mental health assessment using the Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder Self-Assessment Scale (PTSD) and the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Inventory (PSQI). Results: Despite no significant difference in physical fitness, infected young and elderly females experienced poorer… More >

Benjamin J. Lichtbroun^1,2,*, Mann Patel², Alexis Consalvo², Labeeqa Khizir², Munisa Said², Austin Chien², Kevin Chua^1,2, John Pfail^1,2, Rachel Passarelli^1,2, Vignesh T. Packiam¹, David Golombos¹, Sammy Elsamra², Thomas L. Jang¹, Arnav Srivastava^1,3, Saum Ghodoussipour¹

Canadian Journal of Urology, Vol.32, No.1, pp. 55-62, 2025, DOI:10.32604/cju.2025.064701 - 20 March 2025

Abstract Introduction: Infections are the most feared complication of transrectal prostate biopsies, along with growing concerns of antibiotic resistance. Our institution transitioned to a transperineal approach without use of perioperative antibiotics or bowel preparations. We aimed to compare the safety outcomes associated with transperineal and transrectal prostate biopsy techniques. Materials and Methods: A retrospective analysis of patients who underwent transrectal and transperineal prostate biopsies at our institution from 2019–2022 was performed. Results: We identified 319 patients—174 transrectal and 145 transperineal. 8 patients who had transperineal biopsy (5.5%) received peri-operative antibiotics, compared to 100% with transrectal biopsy. 35.86%… More >

Francesco Triggiano^#, Giusy Diella^#, Mara Lorusso, Paolo Veneziani^*, Marilena D’Ambrosio, Daniela Nesta, Luigi Santacroce^*

BIOCELL, Vol.49, No.2, pp. 199-220, 2025, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2025.059322 - 28 February 2025

Abstract The composition of the vaginal microbiota (VMB) influences the health of the female reproductive tract. Several studies have shown how the absence of lactobacilli causes an imbalance in the vaginal microbial community, favoring the development of infections. The present study aims to evaluate the relationship between the VMB and human papillomavirus (HPV) infection to clarify the role of the vaginal microbiota in the persistence and clearance of HPV. Many researchers have provided the scientific community with information on the composition of the microbiota and how it may also influence HPV infection and the development of… More >

Muhammad Imran^1,*, Brett McKinney¹, Azhar Iqbal Kashif Butt²

CMES-Computer Modeling in Engineering & Sciences, Vol.142, No.2, pp. 1899-1931, 2025, DOI:10.32604/cmes.2024.059552 - 27 January 2025

Abstract The co-infection of corona and influenza viruses has emerged as a significant threat to global public health due to their shared modes of transmission and overlapping clinical symptoms. This article presents a novel mathematical model that addresses the dynamics of this co-infection by extending the SEIR (Susceptible-Exposed-Infectious-Recovered) framework to incorporate treatment and hospitalization compartments. The population is divided into eight compartments, with infectious individuals further categorized into influenza infectious, corona infectious, and co-infection cases. The proposed mathematical model is constrained to adhere to fundamental epidemiological properties, such as non-negativity and boundedness within a feasible region.… More >

Ghaliah Alhamzi¹, Badr Saad T. Alkahtani², Ravi Shanker Dubey³, Mati ur Rahman^4,5,*

CMES-Computer Modeling in Engineering & Sciences, Vol.142, No.1, pp. 609-633, 2025, DOI:10.32604/cmes.2024.056604 - 17 December 2024

Abstract This study directs the discussion of HIV disease with a novel kind of complex dynamical generalized and piecewise operator in the sense of classical and Atangana Baleanu (AB) derivatives having arbitrary order. The HIV infection model has a susceptible class, a recovered class, along with a case of infection divided into three sub-different levels or categories and the recovered class. The total time interval is converted into two, which are further investigated for ordinary and fractional order operators of the AB derivative, respectively. The proposed model is tested separately for unique solutions and existence on… More >

Shira Cohen Rubin^1,*, Nadav Zacks¹, Ori Wand², Ophir Freund³, Evgeni Gershman³, Anna Breslavsky², Rotem Givoli-Vilensky¹, Anat Tzurel Ferber², Natalya Bilenko^1,4, Amir Bar-Shai³

European Cytokine Network, Vol.35, No.1, pp. 13-19, 2024, DOI:10.1684/ecn.2024.0494

Abstract COVID-19 vaccination and acute infection result in cellular and humoral immune responses with various degrees of protection. While most studies have addressed the difference in humoral response between vaccination and acute infection, studies on the cellular response are scarce. We aimed to evaluate differences in immune response among vaccinated patients versus those who had recovered from COVID-19. Materials and Methods: This was a prospective study in a tertiary medical centre. The vaccinated group included health care workers, who had received a second dose of the BNT162b2 vaccine 30 days ago. The recovered group included adults… More >

Sarah Azari, Darcy Wolfman², Armine Smith³

Canadian Journal of Urology, Vol.31, No.2, pp. 11854-11857, 2024

Abstract The majority of solid testicular tumors are treated with orchiectomy given the high risk of malignancy. We present a case of a testicular mass in an adult patient in the setting of recent hand, foot, and mouth disease that was managed conservatively with serial ultrasounds. Even though cases of viral-associated testicular masses are rare, this differential diagnosis should be considered in patients with a new testicular mass in the setting of recent viral infection and negative tumor markers. For these patients, observation may be an option instead of immediate orchiectomy. More >

Qinghao Zhang¹, Yijie Yang¹, Jiong Wu¹, Hongru Li¹, Yuan Li¹, Zuran Li^2,*, Yongmei He^1,*

Phyton-International Journal of Experimental Botany, Vol.93, No.10, pp. 2613-2628, 2024, DOI:10.32604/phyton.2024.056014 - 30 October 2024

Abstract In the present study, an indoor potting experiment was conducted to study the effects of enhanced UV-B radiation and Magnaporthe oryzae on the growth, stomatal structure, photosynthesis, and endogenous hormone contents of a traditional rice cultivar Baijiaolaojing in the Yuanyang terraces of Yunnan Province. In addition, the relationships between these parameters and disease indices were analyzed. We aimed to clarify the response of the photosynthetic physiology of rice under the combined stress of UV-B radiation and M. oryzae. Compared with the M. oryzae infection treatment, all the treatments, including M. oryzae infection before (MBR), simultaneously with (MSR), and after… More >

KERAN JIA¹, YANHAO ZHANG¹, MENGYU JIANG², MENGGE CUI², JIA WANG², JIAJIA ZHANG², HUIHAI ZHAO², MENGYAN LI², HUA WANG², QUANMING ZOU^1,#,*, HAO ZENG^1,#,*

BIOCELL, Vol.48, No.9, pp. 1355-1368, 2024, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2024.051383 - 04 September 2024

Abstract Objective: Candida albicans is a common fungal pathogen that triggers complex host defense mechanisms, including coordinated innate and adaptive immune responses, to neutralize invading fungi effectively. Exploring the immune microenvironment has the potential to inform the development of therapeutic strategies for fungal infections. Methods: The study analyzed individual immune cell profiles in peripheral blood mononuclear cells from Candida albicans-infected mice and healthy control mice using single-cell transcriptomics, fluorescence quantitative PCR, and Western blotting. We investigated intergroup differences in the dynamics of immune cell subpopulation infiltration, pathway enrichment, and differentiation during Candida albicans infection. Results: Our findings indicate that infiltration… More >